The brand’s smelly story centers on a pooch who wears antlers and a festive sweater while seeking snacks at a holiday party.

Seeing no reason why a dog shouldn’t have its nose buried in a book, The Honest Kitchen has released a scratch and sniff book titled Is That My Dinner? Created by ad agency Red Tettemer O’Connell + Partners (RTO+P), it’s being given away at pet shops nationwide.

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“We were looking for an interesting way to talk about how The Honest Kitchen’s pet food is made from human-grade whole foods, and we thought it would be fun to tell a story that owners and pets could actually enjoy together,” says Steve O’Connell, executive creative director and partner at RTO+P. “A scratch and sniff book makes for the perfect vehicle—something for humans and canine friends alike.”

The agency worked with illustrator Annie Davidson to tell the story of a pup on the hunt for something to eat at a holiday party, where he is exposed to the holiday scents of everything from candy canes to pumpkin pie. The pooch is stuck wearing antlers and a festive holiday sweater, by the way, but he is a good sport about it.

Dogs were brought in to the RTO+P to perform sniff tests on the first samples of Is That My Dinner? Were they drawn to any particular smells? “When we shared some scents with a few furry friends at the agency, we found that dogs love to smell just about everything,” O’Connell says, adding, “By the way, dog focus groups are the best kind of focus groups.”

Is there a chance The Honest Kitchen could start making books for pets a holiday tradition? “If it’s well received, we’d love to make another one, although it would be fun to explore a different holiday,” O’Connell says. “Just thinking about firing up the grill on Independence Day makes me hungry, so I can only imagine what the scents would do for a dog.”

The Is That My Dinner? book release is accompanied by an #HonestHolidayDinner social media campaign. People who share photos of their pets chowing down via Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter with the campaign’s hashtag will have the chance to win seasonal-themed prizes from The Honest Kitchen.

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About the author

Christine Champagne is a New York City-based journalist best known for covering creativity in television and film, interviewing the talent in front of the camera and behind-the-scenes. She has written for outlets including Emmy, Variety, VanityFair.com, Redbook, Time Out New York and TVSquad.com.